Renowned photographer Alison Jackson has created a short film, putting her own modern take on iconic British films to encourage entrants to Virgin Media Shorts 2012, the UK’s biggest short film competition. Alison drew inspiration from Hitchcock’s Psycho and The King’s Speech, directing a short film to tell the story behind the process. Commenting on her involvement, Alison Jackson said: “When asked to create a short film to inspire the next generation of film makers, I wanted to juxtapose the old with the new and suggest how they may be interpreted today, fusing my style of work with the techniques of the greats like Hitchcock.” Film makers wishing to take part should upload their films to the website below for the chance to win a Grand Prize of up to £30,000 film funding, as well as mentoring opportunities with some of the UK’s top film experts. The winning films will be announced at an exclusive red carpet awards ceremony in central London, later this year.

Virgin Media Shorts collaborates with Alison Jackson to inspire the next generation of British film makers

Acclaimed photographer and film maker Alison Jackson has drawn inspiration from iconic British films to encourage entrants to Virgin Media Shorts 2012, the UK’s biggest short film competition.

Alison drew inspiration from Hitchcock’s Psycho and The King’s Speech, adding her take on iconic scenes with a modern twist and directing a short film to tell the story behind the process.

The iconic scene where King George VI (Colin Firth) and Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) rehearse for the culminating speech in Oscar nominated The King’s Speech was given a modern twist, featuring ‘Kate Middleton’ and ‘Prince William’ in the roles of Colin Firth and Helen Bonham Carter, at 33 Portland Place, the exact location of the original film. Alison brought her sense of humour to the scene, capturing ‘Kate’ reclining on a chaise lounge applying lipstick rather than playing the doting wife. Alison commented, “Wills and Kate are without a doubt the most high profile Royals of our time as well as the most approachable, which is why I used humour to reflect their relaxed image.”

Alison also paid homage to one of the most successful British film makers in history, Hitchcock, recreating his iconic shower scene in Psycho. She replaced one of his favourite actresses, Janet Leigh, with ‘Kate Winslet’, explaining, “For me, Hitchcock is without a doubt one of the most talented British film makers in history, what can be more inspiring to the next generation of film makers? I reworked this with a modern day icon, Kate Winslet, because as an English actress she too has achieved awe-inspiring success. If Hitchcock was alive today I like to think he might have cast her himself.”

Now in its fifth year, Virgin Media Shorts has become the biggest short film competition in the UK and gives both established and emerging British film makers the opportunity to have their work showcased to millions of people across the country.

Past winners have gone on to showcase their work at Cannes as well as being nominated for BAFTAS, and the competition has been supported by a number of high profile and credible judges over the years, including Kevin Spacey, Thandie Newton and John Hurt. This year’s judging panel will be announced in the coming months.

Commenting on her involvement, Alison Jackson said: “When asked to create a short film to inspire the next generation of film makers, I wanted to juxtapose the old with the new and suggest how they may be interpreted today, fusing my style of work with the techniques of the greats like Hitchcock. Virgin Media Shorts is a fantastic platform for budding film makers to showcase their work to a huge audience and hopefully my interpretation inspires them to get involved.”

Jeff Dodds, executive director of brand and marketing communications at Virgin Media, said: “Virgin Media Shorts continues to attract the best new talent year on year as it is a fantastic way for film makers to not only show their work to a large audience but also connect with some of the most influential characters of the film industry. Testament to this is the success of past winners, like Luke Snellin’s BAFTA nomination and 2008’s winners Phil Sansom and Olly Williams showcasing their winning film at Cannes Film Festival. I am looking forward to seeing the entries this year and you never know, this year we could discover the next Hitchcock!”

Film makers wishing to take part should upload their films to http://www.virginmediashorts.co.uk for the chance to win a Grand Prize of up to £30,000 film funding, as well as mentoring opportunities with some of the UK’s top film experts. The winning films will be announced at an exclusive red carpet awards ceremony in central London, later this year.